This invention relates to a laser beam hardening device for hardening a part of a workpiece, and in particular, relates to a laser beam hardening device suitable for hardening a workpiece on a machine tool.
As a device for partially hardening a workpiece, there is a laser beam hardening device. Wide experience is necessary for setting working conditions, such as setting the shape of a workpiece, setting the portion or bounds of workpeice to be hardened or their working methods since the direction of laser beam irradiated from a machining head is constant in a conventional laser beam hardening device.
When workpieces to be hardened with laser beam should be produced in large quantities, it is sufficient to provide an exclusive laser beam hardening device for only such workpieces. Thereby workpieces having constant quality can be machined without depending on a worker""s experience. When many kinds of workpieces should be produced in small quantities (especially, when one article should be produced), it is impossible to provide a laser beam hardening device exclusive for the workpiece for economical reasons.
Besides, concerning a workpiece requiring high accuracy, after-routine owing to heat indication at the time of hardening, such as re-polishing may be necessary. In this case, a workpiece taken out of a machine tool should be attached to the machine tool again after hardening so as to machine. At the result, the work for hardening routine takes longer time. And, machining accuracy may be decreased owing to the dispersion of reproducibility of a position when a workpiece is attached to a machine tool. The object of the present invention is to provide a laser beam hardening device capable of improving productivity of workpieces without a specific skill, having shorter time for hardening routine, taking the above-mentioned circumstances into consideration.
The present invention is laser beam hardening device, comprising a guide means provided passing through a neighborhood of machining area of a plurality of machine tools having a saddle provided at said guide means, being free to move along said guide means.
The laser beam hardening device further comprises a machining head provided at said saddle, being free to selectively insert in and retreat from said machining area of a plurality of said machine tools and a nozzle attachably and detachably provided at said machining head, being capable of ejecting laser beam.
Additionally, the laser beam hardening device comprises a nozzle holder capable of attachably and detachably holding said nozzles and a nozzle exchanging means for exchanging said nozzle between said machining head and said nozzle holder.
Hardening can be performed in such a manner that the machining head of the laser beam hardening device, installing the nozzle fitting for the portion of a workpiece to be hardened, is moved to a workpiece located at the machining area of each machine tool. Laser beam is exposed to a necessary portion of the workpiece; thereby hardening is possible without specific skill. Even in the case where after-routine due to heat indication at the time of hardening, such as polishing, is necessary, the after-routine can be immediately performed since the workpiece is set on the machine tool. Then, the machining accuracy does not decrease since it is not necessary to attach a wokpiece to the prior place of a machine tool again. Thus the attaching place of the workpiece does not vary.
Besides, the time for hardening routine can be shortened so as to improve the productivity of a workpiece. And, continuous hardening work is possible concerning a plurality of machine tools with one laser beam hardening device since the machining head is free to selectively insert in and retreat from the machining area of a plurality of machine tools. Thus it""s working efficiency is high.
The laser beam hardening device may have a guide means, passing through an upper area of said machining area of a plurality of said machine tools.
Accordingly, the guide means is not an obstruction when a workpiece is carried in and carried out of each machine tool and machine tools are maintained, in addition to the effects of the invention.
The laser beam hardening device may also have nozzle exchanging means having a driving means for driving said nozzle holder and said machining head being free to relatively close to and apart from each other.
Furthermore the freedom degree concerning the position of the machining head increases and the workpiece having complex shape can be dealt with, in addition to the effects of the invention.
The laser beam hardening device may also have a nozzle holder that can be moved along said guide means together with said saddle.
Accordingly, it is not necessary to move the saddle along the guide means when the nozzle is exchanged, and the nozzle can be exchanged in a short time so as to improve workability, in addition to the effects of the invention.
The laser beam hardening device may also have a nozzle exchanging means, which has a magazine providing a plurality of said nozzle holders. The plurality of nozzles can be exchanged in a short time, and then workability can be improved, in addition to the effects of the invention.
The laser beam hardening device may also have a plurality of said nozzles, and an optical path having different form of ejecting laser beam is formed at each nozzle.
Accordingly, a plurality of nozzles suitable for the part to be hardened of the workpiece, which is an object of hardening work, can be located, and the workpiece having more complex shape can be also dealt with, in addition to the effects of the invention.